The 2017 Porsche Panamera is like a pair of nice but overpriced shoes. Once you stop considering all the other things that could have and maybe should have been bought with the same amount of money, it becomes more and more pleasurable.

Porsche expects this of its customers, and while the Audi RS7 or the Tesla Model S P100D may provide more bang for not as much bucks (the Cadillac CTS-V is by far the best value of the large performance sedans), the Porsche brand is more revered as the pedigree for performance. So $133,000 might not seem so out of line from a brand that fetches about $120,000 for its often imitated, never duplicated sports coupe known as the 911.

It's widely accepted that the Porsche 911 is the world's most admired and accessible sports car. Turning heads since 1963, the road hugging coupe with curves in all the right places has pretty much remained its same iconic self on the outside, despite countless variations.

So maybe the familiarity...

It's widely accepted that the Porsche 911 is the world's most admired and accessible sports car. Turning heads since 1963, the road hugging coupe with curves in all the right places has pretty much remained its same iconic self on the outside, despite countless variations.

So maybe the familiarity...

(Robert Duffer)

While the Cayenne and Macan felt like crossover derivatives of the automotive world’s most recognizable icon, the first incarnation of the Panamera for 2010 looked like something else altogether. With its bulbous rear and hunchback roofline, Panamera looked more like an experiment than an extension of the 911 into four doors and four full seats.

This new shoe is a much better fit. It’s only an inch longer but in shortening the overhangs and stretching the wheelbase, and with the roofline curving more fluidly into the rear, it better harmonizes with the 911.

The Audi RS 7 is a great car. But the all-new performance trim and its $137,000 price tag is silly.

In a sign of the times, there is no shortage of similarly priced, fully loaded performance vehicles, ranging from a Tesla Model S P100D to a Porsche Panamera Turbo.

Audi's problem is differentiating...

(Robert Duffer)

The new 2.9-liter twin-turbo V-6 engine also supports the proposition in the 4S. It’s responsive without surging or lagging, and due to the compressed layout of the turbochargers as well as some magical action in the variable valve timing, the 440-horsepower engine is efficient under light loads and beastly under full throttle. It doesn’t feel like a sports car when you don’t want it to, instead cruising comfortably and quietly like a luxury sedan. Mash the pedal, though, and 405 pound-feet of low-end torque comes with no lag and plenty of warble as it hits 60 mph in 4 seconds (4.2 seconds without the sport chrono package). That’s 0.3 seconds faster than the old model. The $6,930 sport chrono package features launch control, which literally took our breath away. Switch the controller on the steering wheel to sport plus mode, mash the brake, rev the engine for a second or two so there’s full torque, then let off the brake and hold on. The rocketing sensation is like the Tesla Model S but with engine noise.

The engine is mated to Porsche’s first-ever eight-speed PDK transmission, a dual-clutch setup derived from Porsche’s racing series and known for really quick shifts while maintaining relatively high rpm. But the eighth gear, much like its seventh-gear predecessor, is meant for greater fuel efficiency during highway cruising; sixth gear is the highest gear when hammering it up to a top speed of 179 mph, 2 mph faster than the old one.

All of this complex engineering means more performance and greater efficiency; the 21 mpg city rating is 3 mpg greater than the outgoing model.

Inside, the cockpit has been streamlined so there are fewer buttons in the console, and a wider, more integrated touch screen. The touch screen is an improvement but the safety of a tabletlike interface in these distracted-driving times is questionable. Narrow buttons with drop-down menus on the left open as your hand approaches the screen, which is nice, but the icons are too small. The split-screen backup camera and map displays are really sharp, and the customizable tiles on the home screen are worth customizing so you can leave everything else alone. The learning curve is steep with the Germans; Audi is easiest, then Mercedes-Benz, then BMW and Porsche.

Cadillac is the second-oldest American automaker behind Buick and has the third oldest average age of car buyers, according to a 2014 IHS Automotive report. Lincoln has the oldest. At 59 1/2, Cadillac's average buyer is nearly eight years older than the average car buyer.

While older car buyers...

Cadillac is the second-oldest American automaker behind Buick and has the third oldest average age of car buyers, according to a 2014 IHS Automotive report. Lincoln has the oldest. At 59 1/2, Cadillac's average buyer is nearly eight years older than the average car buyer.

While older car buyers...

(Robert Duffer)

It gets better in the mostly digital instrument display. The analog tachometer is flanked by two 7-inch screens. On the left side is the car’s drive and assist systems, showing such things as the length of the lead car in adaptive cruise control ($2,880), which works down to a stop; on the right is a snapshot of the key ingredients found in the touch screen display, from the trip odometer to the map. Steering wheel controls limit reliance on the touch screen. The tester came with night vision assist ($2,540), which appears in the screen on the right as a black and white shadow representation of what is in front of the car, with heat signatures of living things in color. It’s cool, and meant to detect animals on the roadside obscured by night, but probably only worth it if you live in the sticks.

Inherent in the cost of any luxury item is the freedom to not give a damn. Spending over 30 percent more on options on a performance sedan that starts at $99,900 is acknowledging that if you’re going to do it, you might as well do it up right.